The present invention relates to knock-down portable stands, such as used to support heavy items at level elevations, and light hangers for suspending equipment such as lights or air handling fans and associated ducting over a plant growing environment. The invention aims to provide a portable stand and light hanger of modular construction that easily assembles and disassembles without the need for tools and without requiring fasteners or hardware of any type.
Indoor gardeners utilize trays for starting, propagating, and growing plants. Ebb & flow or drip system gardeners often load a tray with plants, growing media, and water, which in aggregate can become too heavy for the common card table or plastic fold out table to support. Leaving the tray on the ground is not a good option as the standard placement of the water reservoir is directly below the tray. Having the tray elevated for easier plant tending is further desired to make the growing process more enjoyable for the user, and accessible for the disabled grower.
A stand used for growing plants that supports a propagation tray must maintain the tray at a level elevation to facilitate complete draining of water and nutrient solutions from the growing media and tray. As the bottom of the tray must be level to the ground in order to optimize ebb and flow gardening practice, the stand that holds the tray must be sturdy enough to prevent the tray from flexing or tilting, keeping the tray level and undistorted.
Like a stand used in propagation of plants, a stand used for fish tank support must also maintain a level elevation, and be strong enough to hold the weight of an aquarium, full of water, fish, and rock, with over head lights, pumps, and other components necessary for indoor aquatic practice located either above, below, or on the stand. As the nature of aquatics and growing plants includes the presence of water, the stand must not only be strong and rigid when assembled, but also resistant to water damage, and will not fail if occasionally soaked or saturated, which makes stands constructed of wood or wood composite materials undesirable.
A stand that is easy to assemble and disassemble, with the benefit of breaking it down simply to fit into a compact storage area is greatly desired. With the disabled user in mind, the assembly and disassembly process should be easy to understand with no small fasteners or hardware that would be difficult to secure with arthritis or joint pain. Ideally, no tools or hardware would be required.
A recent answer to the ‘stand’ problem presented has been products similar to the “Gorilla Tray Stand” that require fixating a plurality of small threaded fasteners to assemble or disassemble. The structure of the stand itself holds the tray level to the ground, is rigid, and allows for easy moving. However, the short comings of this tray stand is the complicated assembly instructions, difficult to fasten bolts and screws, difficult disassembly, all requiring the use of specialized tools.
Hence, it can be seen in the indoor gardening and indoor aquatics industry, especially for ebb and flow or drip gardening practices, that there is a need for an improved modular stand, capable of securing a propagation tray or fish tank such that it remains level and elevated to the ground, provides space under the tray or tank for a reservoir or the like, allows accessibility from all sides, is mobile, and easily assembled and disassembled. Further, other fields of art also benefit from a stand that is versatile in application and robust in design as described herein.